Monster
by Helga G. Shortman
Summary: Arnold never expected Helga to show up at his doorstep, confused and injured, one snowy night. She had been missing for six months. Now she's back, but has no memory of where she was, who had her, or what he did to her. As she struggles to move on, her monster watches. He wasn't ready to let her go and he certainly isn't ready for someone else to have her. Warnings inside.
1. Found

**Monster**

 _Arnold never expected Helga to show up at his doorstep, confused and injured, one snowy night. She had been missing for six months. Now she's back, but has no memory of where she was, who had her, or what he did to her. As she struggles to move on, her monster watches. He wasn't ready to let her go and he certainly isn't ready for someone else to have her._

 _ **Warnings: Bad language, violence, references sexual assault, and other adult themes.**_

 **Monster Part One**

She was cold. This confused her. It was July. Why was it this cold in July? She looked up as she walked, snowflakes were falling softly around her. She lifted a shivering hand, swiping her nose with the back. It was dark, only the soft of streetlights guided her way. It must have been late. Or really early, depending on the way one looked at it. The streets were completely deserted as it snowed. She was alone. Her mind was frazzled and jumbled. She was so confused. It was July. Why on earth was it snowing?

But she kept walking. Where, she wasn't sure. She just knew she had to get away from...Her eyes shut tightly as she struggled to concentrate. She didn't know who or what she needed to get away from, she just knew she needed to get to safety. She just wished she knew where that was.

Her body was throbbing. She knew why her knees were aching. She landed on them pretty roughly when she fell. She was running when she tripped. She was running before too...Before…

 _Before._

….Before. Before what, she couldn't remember.

Her head was swimming. She was so, so, so tired. But she needed to keep walking. She knew she'd die if she didn't. She didn't know it was possible to freeze to death in July, but that's what would happen.

She stopped once she reached an old red brick building. This was it. Even though she didn't know why it was, she knew this was the place she needed to be. She stared up at the building for a moment. There was a faded spot near the door. A spot where there was once a sign.

 _No kids, pets ok._

She blinked, unsure why that came to mind. The building was dark, if there was anyone inside they were surely asleep. Her eyes closed as she leaned her forehead on the front door. She felt weak. She needed help. Weakly, she raised a fist, pounding at the door. "Please…" The word croaked out of her mouth faintly. "Help…" She continued to pound on the door with all the energy she could muster.

Arnold Shortman was torn from a deep sleep from the sound of a loud bang. He jumped awake, sitting up, panting slightly.

 _Bang! Bang! Bang!_

Someone was at the door. He grabbed his cellphone off his night stand, checking the time as he made his way down stairs. It was 1:48. He frowned. Who the hell would banging at the door like that at nearly two in the morning? For moment, Arnold debated on just going back to bed. Maybe call the police. But he couldn't do that. What if whoever was at the door was in trouble? Even as an adult his instinct to help others was stronger than others. It was one of the reasons why he was a doctor now.

Taking a deep breath, Arnold had his phone all ready to call 911 if needed before swinging the door open. He almost didn't recognize her when he first laid eyes on her. Her blonde hair was messy and wind blown, but he didn't notice that. It was the middle of January, it was well below freezing, and she was just wearing a over sized T-Shirt. No coat, hat, or gloves. No shoes even, she was barefoot.

"Helga?"

She looked so disheveled he wasn't even sure if it was her. She had disappeared six months ago. Recently divorced, her ex husband had been quickly dismissed as a suspect. He had been extremely cooperative with the authorities and was doing everything he could to find her. Her editor was thought to be the last person to see her before her disappearance. The speculations of what happened to her had been awful. Many thought she had been murdered, probably killed by some crazed fan, her body dumped in Elk Lake. Others thought she had been sexually assaulted then murdered. Then there was the theory that she left on her own free will, that she wanted to start a new life with a fresh slate. She had just ended her marriage, after all.

"You know me?" She blinked up at him. Her once vibrant blue eyes looked dull and cloudy.

"Oh my God, Helga. Are you okay?" It was a stupid question. She was so obviously not okay. "Where have you been? Everyone has been worried sick about you!"

"I'm cold."

"Of course you are….I'm sorry." He quickly ushered her inside, she flinched at his touch. "I'm going to get you a blanket and call an ambulance." He sat her down on the cushioned bench that was in the entry way. "I'll be back in a second, okay?" He was on the phone before even leaving her side. She watched him as he disappeared around the corner. He reappeared moments later, a blanket in hand. "They're sending out an ambulance. The police too. They'll be here soon."

Helga said nothing, instead she stared blankly at the space in front of her.

For the first time, under the light of the entry way, Arnold got a good look at her. He visibly gasped as he took in her appearance. There was bruising around her left eye and throughout the majority of her hairline. Blood had dried underneath her nose. Her knees were bleeding and swollen. Perhaps, most disturbingly, was a large partially dried blood stain on her shirt and neck. "Were you hit by a car?" He asked, he took a step towards her to wrap the blanket around her. She visually shaking.

"I don't know." She didn't look at him; instead she continued to look past him, staring at nothing in particular.

"That's okay...We'll figure out what happened to you." He slowed his movements, he didn't want to startle her. "I'm going to wrap this blanket around you, okay? We need to warm you up." He didn't ask how long she had been outside for. He doubted she knew. He waited until she nodded before gently wrapping the blanket around her shoulders. As he wrapped the blanket around her he noticed the bruises around her wrists. The bruise was darker than the rest, stretched all the way around her wrist in a perfect circle like some morbid bracelet. What could cause bruises like that?

 _Restraints…_

His stomach sunk at the realization, but he said nothing. As he wrapped her feet into the blanket he noticed there was a similar bruise around her ankle. "The ambulance should be here in any minute. You'll get some help soon, okay?"

"It's snowing." Helga whispered, hugging the blanket around her tightly. "That's got to be first…" She mumbled, "Snow in July…"

"July?" Arnold asked, frowning deeply. Helga had disappeared July 9th, it was now the end of January. He knew she was disoriented, but she was missing the past six months? He decided not to tell her it was in fact January. He was a general physician, not a psychiatrist. The last thing he wanted to do was make things worse pointing out her lapse in memory.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the sound of sirens. "The ambulance is here." Arnold opened the front door when he heard the sound of a few car doors opening and closing. "She's right here." He told two of the EMTs as they brought up the stretcher, "She's pretty disoriented." He looked past them to see a cop car park behind the ambulance. Two police officers quickly made their way up his stoop.

"Officers. I'm Arnold Shortman. I…" He was interrupted by a scream. He turned his head as the officers ran inside.

"No. No. No. No! Stop!" Helga was struggling to get away from the paramedics, who were trying to get her onto the gurney. "Get off me!" She started to cry, as she started taking swings at the EMTs. "Don't touch me!"

It took the two officers and one the paramedics to hold her down long enough for the second paramedic to sedate her. Arnold watched helplessly as the scene unfolded in front of him. The paramedics quickly wheeled her off to take her to the hospital. The two cops stayed behind to get his statement.

Forty five minutes later Arnold was driving to the hospital to check up on Helga. He knew most of the emergency room staff due the fact he worked at the clinic in the hospital. Though it was almost three in the morning he decided to call Gerald on the way, after all he had been one of the officers on Helga's case.

"You realize it's like three in the morning, right?" A groggy sounding Gerald asked.

"I know. I...uh...I just thought you'd want to know Helga's alive. She showed up on my doorstep about an hour ago."

"Wait. What?" Gerald sounded fully awake now. Arnold was pretty sure he could hear Phoebe in the background asking what's going on. "Did she tell you anything?"

"She was completely out of it. I don't think she knew who I was. Hell, I'm not sure if she knew who she was. She thinks it's July." Arnold explained in a rush. "She was pretty beat up. She these bruises on her wrists on one of her ankles. I don't know...But I think she was handcuffed or shackled or was in some sort of restraint…"

"Where are you know?"

"I'm on my way to the hospital. I need to check up on her. I just can't figure out how she ended up on my stoop."

"Did you talk to the police yet?"

"Of course. Officers Benson and Conners. They didn't get to speak with Helga though. The paramedics had to sedate her. I don't think she could have given them any clear answers now anyway. Like I said, she was pretty out of it."

"I'm going to meet you at the hospital." Gerald told him, hanging up before getting any sort of response from his friend.

* * *

He was sitting on the bed they had been sharing for the past six months. He was in tears as he looked down at the hand gun, debating to end it all right then and there. She left him. She had tricked him into thinking she wasn't going to run. The week before, as an experiment, he let her out of her room in the basement. He had spent so much time preparing the room for her. He ensured that it had all her favorite products and brands. He let her have a computer so she could write. Obviously she didn't have an internet connection with it, but still…

At first his little experiment was working splendidly. He had always hoped she would realize she loved him the way he loved her, he had been a little surprised it was happening so fast. She could be so stubborn sometimes. He should have known she was manipulating him when she let him make love to her in his bedroom and when she snuggled up against him as they watched a movie on his living room couch.

He didn't think anything of it when she suggested they cook a meal together. He looked down at his bandaged hand. She was chopping vegetables when she stabbed him in the hand. He was fucking moron for giving her a knife in the first place.

Now she was gone and she surly reported his crimes. His fingers stroked the gun, slightly surprised police hadn't arrived yet. Again, he debated pulling the trigger. In the end he decided against it. He couldn't bare dying without seeing her one last time. Even if it was in court. It would be worth it.

She was worth it.

* * *

So this first part was probably a bit confusing. Things will make sense. Eventually. Hope you liked it. Review if you enjoyed.


	2. Questions

I'm blown away at all the wonderful reviews I received for the first chapter. It was something I really did not expect. So a big thank you for everyone who took the time to do so.

Please forgive me if I have any medical terms wrong. I'm no doctor and I did the best I could with the information I had. So, if something is completely wrong, please give me some leeway.

 **Monster Part Two**

 _July 9th, The Day of Helga's Abduction..._

" _So...What did you think?" Helga asked, shifting nervously in her chair. When she finished the final chapter in her latest book, The Bright Side, Helga had been completely confident. But when she submitted it to her editor she started to doubt herself. It was different than her other books. There wasn't a conventional story book happy ending like the others. It was left more open ended and she was so, so, so proud of it. But what if everyone else hated it? "Come on Bill! Out with it! Did you like it? Did it suck?"_

" _Well Helga, it's pretty different from your other books." Bill, Helga's long time publisher and one time boss, leaned back in his chair. "I loved it." He the older man grinned, "I think this will be your most successful to date."_

 _Helga released a sigh of relief, "Really?" She asked, unable to contain her smile. "You really loved it?"_

" _I did. It felt very...Personal. I think a lot of your readers will relate." Bill cleared his throat, "There are a few minor edits you'll be need to make, but other than we will be ready to publish as soon as you are." He cracked his knuckles, "Now that we have business out of the way, how have you been? Did you have a good Forth?"_

" _Yeah, one of my friends had a cookout. It was actually my first real outing since the divorce was final." Her divorce from Pete Manning had been an abrupt one, shocking all their friends. From the outside it looked like the two had the perfect marriage. Of course, there was no such thing. They had their issues just like every other couple. Things came to a breaking point when...Helga shook those thoughts out of her head. She didn't want to think about the end of her nine year marriage._

" _Good, good…." Bill smiled, "Do you have any plans for rest of the day?"_

" _Nah, not really. I think I'm going to go for a run when I get home. There are some pretty awesome trails where I rent. After that, I don't know...Maybe do some editing." She blushed. "I ran into a friend at the cookout and He gave me his number…" Her blush deepened, "I'm thinking about calling him…" She confessed to her longtime friend. She started working for Bill straight of college. He quickly discovered that she was quite the talented writer herself, even more talented than many of the authors they were publishing. He's the one that encouraged her to quit and pursue writing full time, promising that he would publish her. Though she and Pete were talking about starting a family he had given her his full support. Bill later told her he would have fired her if he hadn't, but he was relieved that her husband believed in her as much as he did._

 _She cleared her throat nervously, "I just don't know if it's too soon. I mean, we've only been divorced a month…" She looked down at her bare ring finger. She still wasn't used to seeing it naked, even though she hadn't been wearing it for the last three months, when she told Pete she wanted the divorce._

 _Bill shrugged, "It's only too soon if you're not ready to date. Only you know what feels right for you."_

 _They pair said their goodbyes before Helga headed back home. She was renting a house outside of the city for the time being. At the moment she was debating if she wanted to buy a fixer upper or build. When she got home she quickly changed into her running gear and started out to the trails near her home. It was mid afternoon and a fairly hot July day, so she didn't see anyone else out about about. Which, she greatly preferred. She liked running alone._

 _She hadn't been running long when it happened. It felt like a bee sting on her left shoulder, but much, much bigger._

 _And then…._

"Then it was like I blinked and it's now apparently six months later." Helga explained to the two police officers (she had already forgotten their names) as she looked down at the dark bruise on her right wrist, avoiding eye contact with either of them.

"So you have no memory of what happened to you in the last six months?" The female officer asked, jotting down a few things in her notepad.

It had been 36 hours since Helga wondered to Arnold's doorstep. She had been asleep for the last 28. She was still completely utterly exhausted. And so confused.

"The doctors say I was raped." She told them matter of factly. Severe vaginal tearing, the doctors had told her. "That I was abducted…They figure I was restrained in some way. Probably handcuffs." Her fingers the bruise around her wrist. "Abused…" She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, trying to ignore her physical pain. Bruises, cuts, and rug burn covered the vast majority of her body. The bruises on her thighs were particularly disturbing to her. "I can feel all the aftermath, but do I remember any of it happening to me? No."

The male officer spoke up next, "You remember nothing about who did this to you? The smallest of detail would be helpful."

"If I did I would have told you the second I woke up." Helga finally looked up at the two officers. "Are we done here? I told you everything I remember. I want my friend to come back in here." Phoebe was in the waiting room waiting for them to finish up. She had offered to stay while she was being interviewed, but Helga refused.

The female nodded, "Sure. I think you've told us all you can." She handed her a card, Helga quickly read the name, Marie Collins, "If you remember anything else, even if you think it is irrelevant give us a call."

"Will do." Helga slipped the card near the phone beside her bed. "Send my friend back in here when you leave?"

Marie nodded, "Sure. Rest up. Hopefully you'll be out of here soon."

Helga only nodded, beyond frustrated she wasn't more help. Helga had been bruised, but had no real head injury. Initially, they had been stumped about why she couldn't remember the last six months. But after a short talk with a psychiatrist and the head of neurology they diagnosed her with dissociative amnesia (otherwise known as psychogenic amnesia), which they guessed was brought on by psychological trauma.

A moment later there was a soft knock on the door before Phoebe snuck back into the room. "How'd it go?" She took the seat next to Helga's hospital bed. Phoebe's raven colored hair was piled sloppily into a bun on top of her head. She lifted her black rimmed glasses just slightly to rub her eyes.

The blonde woman shrugged, "Fine...I guess. I think they're annoyed I don't remember anything about…" She paused, searching for the right words. "My captivity." Her bandaged hand brushed her hair behind her ear. "So am I."

"You know that's not your fault, right?" Phoebe placed an unsure hand onto Helga's, "I cannot even begin to imagine what you've been through."

Helga let out a humourless laugh, "Ironically neither can I."

"I talked to Olga...She's not sure when she'll be able to get here. I guess work has been insane. And the kids have school..."

Helga rolled her eyes, "I doubt she'll ever come. She hasn't been back since Bob's funeral." Olga moved to London when Helga was 13. She married soon after and had only been back to Hillwood three times. When Miriam died when Helga was 15, when Helga got married, and when Bob died four years earlier. Helga didn't blame her either. When Olga moved to England and acquired that God awful fake accent she finally felt free from the pressure their parents unfairly saddled her with and she didn't look back, pretty much cutting off her family in the process. Helga included. And Helga honestly understood that. They were born twelve years apart and were never close.

"Pete called. He wants to come by sometime tomorrow morning. Are you okay with that? He's been so worried about you." She paused, "We all were." She blinked away tears, "I'm so glad you're here."

"Come on Pheebs...No tears. I'm fine." As soon as the words left her lips she knew they were a lie. She really wasn't okay. She may not remember her time in captivity, but the fear of the unknown was terrifying. "Let Pete know I'd love to see him." They may have been divorced, but Pete had been a source of support and comfort for her since she was 19.

"Gerald and Arnold both really want to stop by too." Phoebe checked her watch, it was 3:30. Arnold works until 4. He mentioned he was going to stop by to see if you were up for visitors."

Helga smiled weakly, "I'm sure he is wondering how the heck I ended up at his place. I wish I could give him an answer to that." That whole thing was pretty hazy for Helga. She had no idea where she had started out. The police only could follow her footprints for a half a block before they were completely covered by a new snowfall. "You know, we've been talking about me an awful lot today...How's Gerald and Ben?" Ben was Phoebe and Gerald's five year old son, born just a year and a half after the two tied the knot.

"They both miss you." Gerald and Helga didn't always get along, but once they hit high school and he started dating Phoebe they actually grew quite close. It was kind of adorable when Gerald gave Pete 'the big brother talk' when they first started dating. Pete was eight years older, and it took quite some time for Gerald to warm up to him. "Ben can't wait to see his Aunt Helga again. I can't even begin to tell you how much he asked for you."

"I don't want to see him yet." Helga quickly told her friend, "Not when I look like this…" She gestured to her bruised appearance. "He can't see me like this. I don't to scare him." Ben was Helga's godson and she loved that boy to death, the last thing she wanted to do was scare him.

"I don't think you'd scare him...But if you want to wait that's okay. Whenever you're ready, I know he'll love to see you." She checked the time, "I'm going to call Gerald, Arnold, and Pete and let them know you're up for some visitors. Do you need anything? I can have Gerald pick up something to eat."

"Mmmm…A cheeseburger and fries does some pretty amazing right now." Helga had lost weight in the past six months. She had already been a thin woman, so the fifteen pounds she lost had been pretty noticeable. "Would he mind picking that up from somewhere?"

"Not at all. I'll be right back, okay?" Phoebe stood up. "Just yell if you need me."

"Okay." Helga nodded, taking a deep breath as Phoebe exited the room. For the first time since she woke up she was alone. She didn't like it. She had panic attacks before and she could feel one coming on now.

 _Inhale_.

She shut her eyes tightly.

 _Exhale_.

She rocked herself as she breathed.

 _Inhale._

She didn't remember what happened to her, but she knew the aftermath. And it hurt.

 _Exhale_.

Being alone in her with only her thoughts completely terrified her. Her brain kept trying to fill in the blanks and those thoughts were horrifying.

 _Inhale._

How was she ever going to be okay with being alone again?

 _Exhale._

She hated being scared.

* * *

"So they have no idea who did this to her?" Arnold asked Gerald as they made their way towards Helga's hospital room.

"Nope." Gerald shook his head solemeningly. "I doubt we'll know until she gets any of her memory back."

"What about DNA? Didn't you tell me that wasn't all her blood on her shirt?"

"It wasn't her blood. We have DNA from under her fingernails and from the rape kit. We have DNA up the ass, but if we have no one to match it with, it's pretty damn useless right now. We've been trying to match it with the National database, but nothing has come up yet."

"Is that normal? For someone to do something like this and _not_ have a record?"

Gerald shrugged, "Unfortunately it's not exactly uncommon." They stopped at Helga's door, "You ready man?"

"As I'll ever be."

Gerald knocked on the door before entering, "It's good to see you." He took a few quick strides to her hospital bed and handed her the take out bag. "How are you feeling?"

"Overwhelmed." She opened the bag, "Thanks for the food." She looked to Arnold, "Thanks for answering your door Football Head."

Arnold only nodded, suddenly unsure what to say. He wanted to tell her he was so happy she was okay, but he wasn't sure that was true at the moment. She looked skittish and unsure. She looked so un-Helga like. He was so used to her larger than life personality and she was always so fearless. But now…It looked like she just wanted to shrink away.

"I'm so glad you got away…." He finally spoke.

Gerald nodded, "We all are."

To Helga's relief they talked about everything and anything else besides her abduction while she ate.

* * *

It had been a day and half since the love of his life ranaway from him. He didn't understand why he hadn't been arrested yet. He saw a segment on the news that she was found and recovering in the hospital. He knew she found help. But there was no manhunt for him. He didn't understand why.

After he decided against taking his own life he sat in at the kitchen table, a mixture of his and her blood still soaking into the hardwood just a few feet away, waiting for the inevitable. But the inevitable never came. Finally, he decided to clean up and go to bed.

He cried himself to sleep that night. It was the first night in over six months that she was not by his side. He was surprised he got any sleep at all without her in bed with him.

Later, when he woke up he found himself reaching to her. He wanted to pull her close. He wanted to make love to her. Even though most of the time she fought, screamed, and cried. He knew it was only a matter of time before she loved him back...

God, he missed her so much…

He wanted her back….

No...He _needed_ her back at home with him.

He just needed to time to figure out how to do just that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Monster Part Three**

 _July Fourth, five days before Helga's abduction…_

 _It was Rhonda Lloyd's annual Fourth of July bash, this year the heiress held it at her mansion hiring the best catering company in the city to cater. The food was was probably incredible, but caviar and creme fraiche tartlets didn't seem very Fourth of July-y in Arnold's opinion. He would have been perfectly happy with burgers and hotdogs on the grill. Maybe he could snag one from the kid's table. The 'adult' food wasn't doing it for him._

 _Arnold turned, about to sneak a hamburger or two from the kid's table when he saw her. Helga Pataki. Or was she still Helga Manning? He thought he heard that she was going back to her maiden name, but wasn't sure if she actually went through it. Not that any of that really mattered. She was still Helga and she was no longer married. He wondered what happened, the two always seemed so happy together. At the moment Helga was sitting next to Ben, drawing doodles with him on the paper table cloth. A plate packed with the 'kid's' food sat to her right._

 _Helga had only gotten prettier as she got older. The single life seemed to agree with her too, her blonde hair was braided into a side ponytail; she looked pretty damn cute in her pink bikini top and light washed jean shorts. She had been an avid runner since middle school and it did her body good. He watched for as Ben whispered something in her ear and couldn't help but smile when she started to laugh. He always liked Helga's laugh. Even back when it was always dripped in sarcasm._

 _She spotted him watching her as she took a bite of her burger. She blushed before grabbing a napkin and wiping away some ketchup from the corner of her mouth. Taking a deep breath and gathering all his courage Arnold approached her just as Ben scurried off with Nadine's son who was around the same age. "Hey Helga." Arnold smiled shyly. His eyes drifted to her plate of food, "I see you aren't into Rhonda's adult meal choices either?"_

 _Helga shook her head, scrunching up her nose. "All that fancy mumbo jumbo isn't my cup of tea. I'm perfectly happy with a burger and chips. Rhonda tried to tell me eating the kid's food is childish, but…" Helga grabbed a potato chip, scooping up a gob of ranch dip, "She can bite me."_

" _My mom told me it's not nice to bite." Ben spoke up, looking up from his doodle._

" _Your mom is very smart. You should always listen to her."_

 _Ben tugged on Helga's arm, "Aunt Helga, I'm done. I drew us." He pointed to the paper tablecloth in front of him._

 _Helga gasped, "You drew that all by yourself? You are going to be such a good artist someday." She fished out her phone from her pocket, snapping a quick picture of the drawing. It really was quite a good drawing for a five year old._

" _I'm gonna go in the bounce house." Ben didn't wait for a response before he taking off from the picnic table._

" _He's such a sweetheart." Helga smiled as she watched Ben run off, joining the other kids at the party. "Phoebe and Gerald are so lucky." She looked up at Arnold. "Are you here to steal the kid's food too?"_

 _Arnold nodded, "I am. Do you mind if I keep you company?"_

 _Helga shook her head, "Not at all. When you grab your food, could you grab me another Yahoo?" She asked, holding up her empty soda bottle._

" _Sure. Not a problem. I'll be right back." A few minutes later he returned with a plate full of food and two Yahoo sodas. Arnold took a seat next to Helga, rather than the one across from her._

" _Thanks." Helga opened the bottle, taking a quick drink. "So, how've you been Doctor Shortman? It's been awhile."_

" _Good, everything is good. Work has been pretty awesome. Love the people I work with, love my patients. I've been doing a lot of work on the boarding house. There hasn't been a boarder in years, so I've been converting everything into a single family home." Arnold rambled before clearing his throat, "How have you been? You know since...I've last seen you."_

 _Helga chucked, "You mean since divorcing Pete." She shrugged, "Things have been good. I just finished a new book. Hopefully my publisher will like it. Other than that I've been keeping busy. I'm renting right now, but I think I'd really love to find a fixer upper someday. Maybe after my first royalty check from my new book comes in."_

" _I'm sure they'll love the book. I have to tell you I really enjoyed your others." He nudged her, grinning, "How does it feel to be a world famous author?_

" _Pretty damn good." Helga grinned back at him. "It really is a dream come true." She paused, "So, you know my love life status. What's yours?"_

" _I'm single...I really haven't met anyone lately who peaked my interest." He swallowed nervously. "You know I had the biggest crush on you freshman year of college..." He, Helga, Phoebe, and Gerald had all gone to Hillwood University during their freshman and sophomore years before Arnold left for Medical school and Gerald started at the police academy._

 _Helga's eyebrows shot up in surprise, "No...I didn't know that! Why did you ever say anything?" From what she could tell Arnold always seemed so bold when it came to his crushes. Growing up, he would actually tell the girl when he had feelings for her._

 _Arnold shrugged, "You met Pete and you were happy. I wasn't about to ruin that."_

 _Helga blushed, "That's really sweet."_

" _I know it's only been a month since you go divorced, but I was thinking maybe we could catch up sometime…." He grabbed a blue crayon and wrote out his number. "You know, as friends or whatever."_

 _Helga giggled, "Doctor Shortman, has your number changed in the past twelve years?" He shook his head. "You know we have communicated countless times in the last decade." He nodded, "I have your number you doofus." She laughed as Arnold blushed, "Do you have mine? Or have you deleted off of your phone?"_

" _I have your number." Arnold felt like a complete idiot. For some reason Helga made him feel like a awkward teenager trying to hit on girl for the first time._

" _I think I'm ready for a dip in the pool. You gonna join me?" She nudged him._

 _He nudged her back, "Yeah, let's go swimming."_

 _The two blondes were completely unaware they were being watched as they made their way to the pool. He had been watching them from afar. He hated their flirtations. It disgusted him. This wouldn't do at all._

 _He was going to have to speed things along._

* * *

Helga had a pretty decent night sleep thanks to the painkillers they had her on. A psychologist who specializes in traumatic experiences came by earlier to have a chat with her. She had been on antidepressants for the past two years, doctor's doubted she had access to them during her captivity so her therapist started her at a smaller dosage, but added a anti-anxiety after Helga told her about her panic attack the day before.

From the sound of it Helga would be able to go home by the end of the week if her therapist thought she was psychologically strong enough. Which Helga was very confident that she was.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. "Come in." She called, combing her hair with her fingers.

A moment later the door opened, "Hey kid…" Pete walked into her hospital room, carrying a huge bouquet of lilies and pink and red roses. He set it down on Helga's bedside table before pulling her into a hug, "I'm so happy you're here...I've been worried sick about you."

Helga hugged him back tightly, "Thank you for coming."

"Of course I'm here." Slowly, Pete pulled away taking a seat next to his ex wife's hospital bed. "I'm so relieved you're alright." He combed his fingers through his hair, "Phoebe told me you don't remember anything?"

Helga shook her head, "Not a thing. I literally have no memories of the last six months. I have no idea what happened to me." She avoided looking at her wrists, "Though, my doctors gave me a pretty good idea what probably happened." She looked over at Pete, who looked so much older than she last saw him. It really looked like he aged more in the past six months than he had in the last six years. She spotted more than a few grey hairs popping out of his dark brown hair. "I should be getting out of here by the end of the week. I can't wait to go home."

"Oh." The frown that etched Pete's lips deepened, "Phoebe didn't tell you?"

Helga felt her heart rate increase. "Tell me what?"

"Your lease was up two months ago...We didn't know what to do, so we packed your things up and rented a storage unit."

"Oh." Helga wasn't sure what to say. This wasn't something she had been expecting to hear. "I guess I'll have to start looking for a new place."

Pete nodded, "I'll help you find one if you need the help."

"Okay...Thanks."

Pete rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Look….There is something I need to tell you. It's probably going to hurt and it's probably too soon for you, but I need you to hear it from me before you hear it from anyone else...I've been seeing someone."

Helga turned away from Pete, looking straight forward. "Is it her?"

"Yes."

" _She meant nothing to me Helga._ " Helga's voice cracked, "Isn't that what you said?"

"Yes...Helga I swear, it's not what you think. After you disappeared I was devastated...I-"

"I'm sorry _**my**_ _kidnapping_ was so hard on _**you**_."

"It wasn't like that...People thought I did something to you!"

" _It was a mistake. I swear Helga. I love you so damn much_ …" She glared at him. "What a load of bullshit. God knows what's happened to me in the past six months...Good to know she was able to make things easier for you."

"She's pregnant."

"Get. Out."

"Helga…" Pete tried to take her hand.

"No! Get out before I get out of this fucking bed and throw your ass out of here!"

"Please…"

"No! I don't want to hear it!" She was yelling know. "You **BEGGED** me not to leave you. You swore it a one time thing. I hate you. GET OUT!"

Pete nodded, "Okay."

"Take your fucking flowers with you. I don't want them."

He only nodded before grabbing the bouquet and leaving the room.

The moment the door closed Helga broke down in tears, sobbing into her pillow.

* * *

He learned the reason why he hadn't been arrested through Facebook. She didn't remember anything! This was _perfect_. The only way this whole thing would have worked out more perfectly was if she hadn't escaped in the first place.

He had to tread lightly. Though she didn't have any memory of their time together at the moment, that didn't mean she wouldn't ever get any of that time back. A number of things could trigger her memory. Time, a smell, a sound...Him.

For now he'd have to use the videos he took of their love making to get him through his days without her. Even when she screamed and cried it was exciting to him. He would get more upset when she just laid there like corpse or something. He really enjoyed overpowering her. It had been such a turn on for him.

As painful as it was for him, he would have to go back in the shadows and watch her from afar. He sighed, he wished he didn't have to this again. But if he wanted her back, which he did, it was necessary.

* * *

So I gave you some pretty big revelations in this chapter. Like one of the reasons why Helga's marriage ended. I know you all probably really hate Pete right now, but I don't think he is a horrible, awful guy. He has made mistakes, yes, but he's not out of the story yet. Are there guesses on what lead to Pete's infidelity? I hope you all are enjoying the flashbacks, because their will be more of them. We now know Helga knows her abductor, but do we? Keep reading to find out. Helga will be out of the hospital soon and that's where this story really picks up.

Thank you all for the wonderful reviews. Please keep them coming, they encourage me to keep writing.

For those of you who are interested, I'm thinking about writing a Helga/Gerald centered one shot. I absolutely love Helga and Arnold (obviously), but for some reason I kind of love the idea of Helga and Gerald. It will be heartbreaking, but heartwarming at the same time. So let me know what you think of that idea.


	4. Chapter 4

**Monster Part Four**

 _July 12, three days after Helga's abduction…_

 _Gerald Johansson was annoyed. He had gotten off of work late and all he wanted to do was go home, have supper with his wife and son, and relax. He had been on his way home when Phoebe called, insisting that he stop at Helga's to check on her. Apparently she hadn't been returning any of Phoebe's texts or calls. The two women had been extremely close since they were children. They talked everyday. But he wasn't concerned. She had started a new book and even Gerald knew Helga was dead to the world when inspiration struck._

 _Gerald rang the bell and waited. No answer. Cupping his hands around his eyes he peered into the window in the front door. The lights were off and Helga wasn't in sight. He rang the doorbell again. Still no answer. Straining his ears, he could swear he heard sounds coming from inside. If it was the television or radio, he wasn't sure. He rang one more time, before walking to the garage door. He knew the passcode to get inside._

 _His stomach dropped slightly once he got inside the garage. Helga's car was inside. He grabbed the hide-a-key she had hidden on a shelving unit near the door leading into the house before going inside. "Helga?" He called out, his hand resting on his side piece. "Helga? You home?" He called again as he made his way into her home. His stomach dropped even more when he realized the sound he had heard from outside was an alarm. He quickly found her phone, sitting on her kitchen island charging, a medication reminder flashing on the screen._

 _He frowned when he realized there were three alarm alerts._

 _Helga hadn't been home since the ninth._

 _Her car keys were found two weeks later, lost in the bushes in a nearby running trail._

* * *

Gerald took a deep breath before knocking on Helga's hospital room door. "Come in." Her voice called out softly.

He opened the door, "Hey." He offered her a small smile. "How are you feeling?" He sat down in one of the chairs next to her bed.

"Honestly, I've been better."

It was then when Gerald noticed her eyes were puffy and bloodshot. She had been crying. "What happened? Did you remember something?"

"No." She sniffed, "Pete stopped by...He's going to be a dad." She quickly wiped away a fresh batch of tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"Oh. That's…" He paused, unsure about what to say. "That's probably literally the last thing you need to hear right now. I'm so sorry."

She shrugged, "It is what it is I guess. I just can't believe he was screwing her while I was...going through whatever it was I was going through." She combed her fingers through her hair, "It's not like I never expected him to move on, because of course he was. I just never imagined it would happen like this." Gerald handed her a tissue, which she used to dab her eyes. "To top it all off, I have to find a new place to live."

"You know you can always stay with Phoebe and me. For as long as you need."

Helga shook her head, "I'm a mess right now. I don't want to scare Ben."

"You know he keeps asking about you. He loves you, he really wants to see you and he'd be beyond essatic if you'd stay with us."

"I'll think about it."

"Good." Gerald smiled softly, "Now, the reason I stopped over…." He pulled something out of his briefcase. Helga's laptop."I got this out of evidence for you."

"Do you guys have any idea who did this to me?"

Gerald shook his head, "Unfortunately, no. We poured through every email, every fan letter we could find. We looked in to a few different fans who raised some red flags, but nothing panned out. After we found out the blood on your shirt wasn't yours we looked into emergency room visits of men with unexplained injuries or car accidents. So far we have nothing."

Helga exhaled deeply, "Thanks for bringing this by." She grabbed her laptop, placing on over the bed table. "Is it charged?"

Gerald nodded, "It is."

"I keep thinking of all the things I missed over the past six months. I missed all your thirtieth birthdays. How did you end up celebrating yours?"

"I turned thirty barely a month after you were kidnaped. None of us felt like celebrating. We didn't do anything for Phoebe's either." He gave her shoulder a small, comforting squeeze. "I saw we do all our celebrating for yours." He checked his watch, "I need to get back to the station. Just think about my offer, okay? We'd love to have you."

"Yeah, I'll think about it."

* * *

Arnold decided to stop by Helga's room on his lunch break. He knew Phoebe had to work, so she wouldn't be by until after her workday was over. She was on her laptop when he entered the room, "Are you writing already?" He asked, taking a seat next to her.

"Actually, no. I made the mistake going on Facebook and now I'm looking for a new place to live. My lease for the house I was renting ended while I was abducted."

Arnold didn't bother asking why going on Facebook was a mistake. He had seen some of the comments. Most were supportive, but there were others accusing Helga of lying about the whole ordeal. Apparently, the memory loss was all too convenient for some people. "Any luck finding a place?"

Helga shook her head, "No. Not yet. I found a couple that would be okay...I just...I don't know…" She didn't want to admit it, but the thought of living alone frightened her. "Gerald told me I could stay with them, but I don't think I could disrupt their lives like that."

Arnold scratched the back of his neck. "I don't know if you'd be interested, but I _do_ have more than enough room in the boarding house. My parents only stay during the summer, when they're not in San Lorenzo." He nudged her, "I have no life outside of work for you to disrupt."

"I...I...I couldn't ask you to let me stay with you…"

"You didn't ask. I'm offering. You don't have to give me an answer now, just know it's an option."

The truth was Helga didn't need to think about it. She certainly didn't want to live alone, but she also wasn't really keen on moving in with Phoebe, Gerald, and Ben. "Are you serious about this?"

"I wouldn't have offered if I wasn't."

"If you're sure I won't be imposing...I'd really appreciate being able to stay with you." She shut her laptop. "To be honest the thought of living alone right now isn't very appealing."

"I'm sure and I think everyone can understand that. I'll start making arrangements right away."

* * *

After work Arnold stopped at the hardware store to copy some keys for Helga. As the keys were being made, Arnold wondered around the store to pass the time.

"Arnold?"

He turned to see Wolfgang. "Hey! It's been awhile. How've you been?"

"Good. Work has been keeping me busy." Wolfgang had been working in construction, building houses, since he graduated high school. "How about you? I mean, I heard about Helga. That whole thing is so crazy. Have you seen her? How is she doing?"

"She's obviously been through a lot, but I think she's doing good." Arnold felt slightly uncomfortable talking about Helga's situation with someone who wasn't Phoebe, Gerald, or the police. "Would you happen to know anything about home security systems?"

"Yeah, I do." Wolfgang dug into his wallet, "I usually recommend Frontpoint or ADT. Both are really good choices."

Arnold watched as Wolfgang somewhat clumsily flipped through a stack of business cards that he pulled from his wallet. He left hand was heavily bandaged, making the simple task somewhat more difficult. "What happened to your hand?" He asked curiously.

"Nail gun got away from me."

"Ouch!"

"Yeah, it hurt like a bitch. At least I'm all up to date on my tetanus shots now." Wolfgang pulled out the card he had been looking for. "If you're looking to beef up your home security this is the guy to call. He'll hook you up. Mention my name, he might even give you a discount."

"Great. Thank you so much."

"If you see Helga, let her know I'm thinking about her. I really hope they catch the son of a bitch that did this to her."

Arnold nodded, "Yeah...You and me both."

* * *

 _March 3, four months before Helga's abduction..._

 _She had been drinking fairly heavily for over two hours now. He had been surprised that she went to that dive bar in the first place. She was never someone who went out to bars by herself. Nor was she a drinker. But she seemed really restless since that husband of hers went out of town, so maybe she needed a change of pace._

 _He had followed her there. He had been following her a lot lately. He had thought was over his...infatuation with her, but when he moved back to Hillwood and saw her again all those feelings came rushing back and became stronger than ever._

 _Taking a deep breath he decided he was going to brave. He was going to approach her. "Helga? Is that you? Wow! It's been awhile! How've you been?" As he took a seat next to her he noticed that she was playing with her wedding ring. "I think the last time we saw each other was at your wedding. How's married life treating you?"_

 _"Great. At least it was until he fucked another woman last month." She slurred, obviously drunk._

 _This pissed him off. Pete had the most perfect, beautiful, sexy wife at home and he had the audacity to cheat on her? "I'm so sorry. So you're getting divorced?"_

 _Helga shrugged, "I don't know. He swears it was a one time thing. That it didn't mean anything." She downed the rest of her drink before flagging down the bartender and motioning she needed another drink. "The stupid thing is I kind of believe him. He's in Seattle for the weekend for work. I never had an issue with him traveling. We both travel. But now…" She took several gulps of her freshened drink. "All I can think about is the possibility that he's screwing another woman. I've never not trusted him before."_

 _"So what are you going to do?"_

 _"Right now...I'm going to drink."_

 _Suddenly, he felt bold. He leaned closer to the intoxicated blonde, "I think I have an idea what else you could do…"_

 _She took another drink, "Oh yeah? And what's that?"_

 _"Get revenge." He closed the gap between them as he sloppily pressed his lips against hers. He tasted her lips only for a moment before her hands flattened against his chest, pushing him away. "I'm so sorry." He apologized. "I think I totally misread the situation."_

 _"Yeah. You did." She glared at him, "Just because Pete is a cheater doesn't mean I am." She pulled out some money from her purse, throwing it on the bar. "I'm out of here."_

 _"Helga...Wait. I'm sorry." He was so, so, so stupid. How could he screw this up so quickly? He could have had a chance! "That was such a dick move. I shouldn't have done that."_

 _"Don't worry about it. But I really should get going."_

 _"Do you need a ride?"_

 _"I'll call someone." Without another word she grabbed her coat and purse and left the bar, stumbling slightly as she left._

 _As he watched her leave the bar he decided right then and there that one way or another she would be his. He spent the next four months plotting. He was delighted when she divorced that undeserving husband of hers. It was going to make things so much easier. He knew she wouldn't be with him willingly. Not at first anyway, but she would learn to love him._

 _He'd make sure of that._

* * *

Next chapter Helga is out of the hospital and moving in with Arnold. Any guesses on who Helga's kidnapper is? If you like this chapter please review!


	5. Nightmare

*****Warning***Warning***Warning*****

 **I feel I need to warn everyone that this chapter will depict a scene of violence and implied sexual assault. It was hard to write and I think it might be a little hard to read. It's nothing too terribly graphic, but it might make some people uncomfortable.**

* * *

 **Monster Part Five**

Helga hated hospitals. She hated being cooped up in her room and she hated the constant questioning. She knew full well the police were just doing their jobs, but there was only so many ways she could say she didn't remember her time in captivity. She still remembered nothing. Honestly, it was still shocking to her that six months had passed in the blink of an eye. The last she knew it was July.

It took a few different interviews until they started asking questions about _before_ she was abducted. Unfortunately, she couldn't give them much information about that either. She had gotten divorced, moved into a place of her own, and was writing a book. She went through a lot in a short period of time, but didn't notice anything that truly seemed off. She never had a suspicion she was being followed or even recalled being pursued by anyone besides passing flirtation.

She knew the officers on her case were started to get frustrated with her, but they were also starting to consider the fact her abduction had been completely random. The theory was someone saw her alone and took the opportunity to snatch her right then and there. Honestly, Helga wasn't sure what theory disturbed her more; her abduction being completely random or planned.

A knock on her hospital's room door interrupted Helga's thoughts. A moment later Phoebe popped her head in. "Hey." She flashed her friend a smile as she entered the room, "Are you ready to get out of here?"

Helga smiled, "More than anything." She took a look at the overnight bag her friend was carrying around her right shoulder. "Please tell me that's a change of clothes." She was beyond thankful that Phoebe, Gerald, and Arnold spent the past week moving and unpacking her things to her room at Arnold's. She hated unpacking.

"It is." Phoebe set the bag down on the bed. "Arnold is talking to your doctor about getting your discharge papers and aftercare and Gerald is at the boarding house making sure it's nice and secure for you two."

Helga nodded, scratching her arm nervously. "Do you really think I'm still in danger?"

"I don't know." Phoebe told her honestly sitting on the edge of the bed next to her best friend. "I certainly hope not...But it's something we can't risk. We need to take all the precautions we can to make sure nothing like what you just went through never happens ever again."

"I'm going to change. It's going to feel so good to get out of this damn hospital gown." Helga unzipped the bag to check out what Phoebe had packed for her. She stared down at the bra and underwear that sat on top of her favorite pink sweater and dark washed jeans. The bra and underwear themselves were probably some of her most unremarkable ones she owned. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she wore plain white cotton.

"Are the clothes okay?"

"Yeah, they're fine. Thank you." Helga blinked, "I just...I don't think he let me wear undergarments." Phoebe's jaw dropped and eyes widened, Helga continued before she could say anything, "I don't remember anything. It's just a feeling I have. Can you help me up?" Even though Helga had been conscious for the whole week she was in the hospital she did very little walking, per hospital rules she hadn't even gotten out of bed by herself.

"Of course." Phoebe stood up before grabbing the blonde woman's hands to help her up from the bed. She forced herself not to look at the bruises that were splattered down her friend's legs. They were healing nicely, but had turned into a sickly green color. "Did you need any help changing?"

"No, I'm good." Helga called out before disappearing into the bathroom.

Phoebe lifted her glasses to wipe her eyes; she needed to get a grip...She had been having nightmares nearly every night since they found out Helga had disappeared. She thought they would have stopped when she was found, but they had only gotten worse. Her subconscious had been running wild with the possible scenarios about how Helga got each and every bruise. She could only hope that reality wasn't as gruesome as her imagination.

But judging by Helga's bruising and...Her stomach churned, and her _other_ physical injuries she seriously doubted that was true. She hadn't admitted it to Gerald (or anyone), because she knew it would upset him (he wanted nothing more to make the bastard pay), but she secretly wished Helga would never ever remember her time in captivity. If she got her memory back it would be like she lived through it all twice. Her best friend didn't deserve that kind of pain.

A moment later Helga exited the bathroom. The sweater that once fit her perfectly hung loosely off her shoulders. "You look nice." Phoebe offered her a small smile. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

"Your room is upstairs, right across from mine." Arnold frowned, "Wait, maybe I we should have put you room on the first level. Can you handle the stairs?"

Helga gave him a look before rolling her eyes and started to make her way up the stairs. "Pretty sure I can handle them." In all honesty the walk up the stairs was a bit painful. The bruises on her inner thighs were particularly sore, but in truth those bruises were constantly tender, especially when she used the bathroom. But she didn't show any pain on her face, she refused to cause her friends to think she was even more fragile than they already thought. "What room did you say it was again?"

"It's right here." Phoebe opened the door, "I unpacked all your clothes and the things I thought you'd want. The rest of it is still in storage. We can go there whenever you're feeling up to it." She stepped aside so her blonde friend could get a look at her new room.

Helga's eyes went to her bed king sized bed, the light blue bedspread she had bought when she had moved into her own place made neatly and piled with her decorative pillows. The longer Helga stared at the more her heart rate increased, though she had no idea why. "I want to change the bedding." She started to pull off the pillows and rip off the comforter along with the sheets. "Arnold, do you have an extra set I can borrow until I buy a new one?"

"Yeah, I have one." Arnold and Phoebe exchanged slightly worried glances, "I'll go grab it."

"Is everything okay?" Phoebe asked taking step forward. "This was your comforter set at home, wasn't it?

"Yeah...Everything is fine. I'm fine. I can't explain it, but I just can't stand looking at it right now. I don't know why."

"Maybe you were actually taken from your bed…" Phoebe mumbled, though that felt unlikely. When Gerald and the other officers first started to investigate Helga's disappearance nothing in her home seemed disturbed, of course he had three days to clean up so it wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility. Finding Helga's keys on the running trail near her house might have been placed there on purpose.

"Yeah...Maybe." Helga doubted that. She was almost positive that she was taken during her run. "Do you think Gerald will be back soon? I'm getting hungry." Gerald had ran out to grab some take out to celebrate Helga being released for the hospital. No one felt like cooking.

"He should be here in a half an hour or so." She bent down and started to help Helga fold her discarded bedding. "I was hoping I could bring Ben by sometime this weekend. Do you think you'll be feeling up for that at all?" Phoebe hadn't mentioned her son since the first time she brought him up. She didn't want to overwhelm or hound Helga into something she wasn't ready for.

Helga's hand went to the faded bruise under her eye. It hardly hurt anymore, but it was still there. "Actually, could we wait a little bit yet? How about next weekend? I think next weekend would be better." She paused, "I'm sorry. I'm just not ready yet."

"Don't apologize. There's nothing to be sorry about. It's fine. In the meantime I'll have him make you more get well cards."

Arnold reappeared in Helga's room a new bedding set in hand. "This okay? It's all I find. They are celan, at least."

"They're fine. Thank you. I'll do some online shopping in the next few days, so I won't need them long." She didn't fight it when Phoebe and Arnold began to remake her bed. The bruising on her ribs was just sore enough that she would regret trying to do it herself.

"We could do some shopping tomorrow if you wanted." Phoebe offered, "I have a twenty percent off coupon for _Bed, Bath, and Beyond_."

"Nah...That's okay. I think I'll stick to shopping online. It's only been a week. People are still really curious. I really can't deal with that right now."

"I didn't even think of that…" Phoebe mumbled. Her phone beeping, signaling a text, interrupted before she could continue. She checked her phone, "Gerald's on his way with dinner. Let's get the table set."

* * *

A few hours later Helga decided to take a shower before bed. She was thankful her room had its own bathroom. Arnold really had done a wonderful job renovating the boarding house. He had given her a tour after they ate. His old room was now his office, he quickly offered it as a place for her to write.

If only she had the desire to write anything right now.

She prayed that she'd find inspiration again. Helga had talked to her editor, Bill, a few days earlier when he visited her in the hospital. He promised her there was no pressure to publish her finished book. He understood that she needed some time.

"Arnold?" Helga called out, knocking on his bedroom door. After her shower she changed into an oversized grey hooded sweatshirt and black leggings. She felt more comfortable being covered.

A moment later Arnold answered. "Everything okay? Do you need anything?"

"No. I just wanted to tell you I'm going to watch some television in my room before I go to bed." She paused, shifting nervously. "And I just wanted to thank you. For everything. I don't think I could handle living by myself right now."

"I'm glad you're here." Arnold admitted, "I wish it was under better circumstances, but it's good to have you."

A twinge of pink appeared on her cheeks, "Thanks...Well...Goodnight."

"Goodnight. And Helga...If you need anything, I'm right here. Okay?"

Helga nodded, "I know."

* * *

 _Her eyes stared down at the water. She refused to look at him as he rinsed her favorite conditioner from her hair. The fact he insisted on bathing her made her skin crawl, though she supposed it was better than when he forced her to shower with him. Even though she was naked he was clothed._

 _That was a plus._

" _Alright…Now you're almost nice and clean." The sound of his voice made her shutter. "Your legs are getting too hairy. It's disgusting, you need to shave." She watched him from the corner of her eye unlock one of the bathroom cabinets and grab a razor and shaving cream. He sat down on the edge of the tub and handed her the items. "Shave."_

 _It wasn't a request._

 _Her hands were shaking as she took the shaving cream. She could feel his intense stare as she lathered up one of her legs with it. She held out her hand and he placed the razor in her hand. Helga's fingers wrapped themselves around the razor's handle. As his hand retreated it lingered at her breast, giving it a not so gentle squeeze._

 _That's when Helga struck._

 _Throwing all her weight she lunged at him, razor in hand, struggling to go for the jugular. He stopped her almost immediately. It had been three weeks since he kidnapped her and he controlled everything, especially what and how much she ate. She already felt weaker than she had been in years. He snatched the razor out of her hand before throwing it onto the floor next to the toilet. He used all his strength to shove her back into the bathtub before twisting a chunk of hair into his fist with his right hand while his left wrapped around her neck._

 _He hovered over her and she thrust her under the water, pressing the back of her head to the bottom of the tub. Her limbs flailed about, struggling to release herself from his grip. His hand left her neck for a moment as he pulled her by the hair up from the water. She sputtered and coughed as she gasped for air, but the relief only lasted a moment before his hands went back to their previous position and forced her head back under the water. Her fingers went to his left wrist, clawing in a vein attempt to get him to release his grip._

 _She was sobbing by the time he let her back up for air. She coughed painfully as she cried, snot dripping from her nose. Her fingers rubbing her aching neck._

 _He shoved the razor back into her hand. "Shave." He repeated in a low demand. Helga nodded, working quickly to do just that._

 _After she finished he grabbed her upper arm, practically yanking her out of the tub as she struggle to scrambled to her feet._

 _He sat her down on the closed toilet and and began to roughly dry her off. Her fingers went to her neck trying to dull the throbbing pain. She started tear up again, thinking of the inevitable bruises to come that would be a constant physical reminder of what just happened._

" _Quit your blubbering." He snapped as he glared at her. "That was_ _ **your**_ _fault._ _ **You**_ _made me do that. He grabbed her chin roughly, "Do you understand that?" He barked, "If you would just cooperate I wouldn't have to hurt you." His expression suddenly softed. "Can't you see how much I love you?" Helga froze as he leaned down and kissed her. "I know you just need some time to realize you love me too...But you have to stop being so damn defiant Helga...I hate hurting you. You understand that, right?"_

 _Helga nodded, "I understand." She swallowed, surprised that she found her voice._

 _He smiled brightly, "Good." He took her hand in his and he helped her up from the toilet and led her into the room he had set up for her. He went to the dresser and rummaged around for a moment before pulling out lacey red nighty. He had her wear it before. It barely covered anything and was just barely longer than her butt. "Put this on and sit on the bed. I need to run up stairs really quick."_

 _She listened. She quickly got dressed in negligee he had given her and sat down on the bed, just as he said to do. Her looked down at the familier light blue comforter. Her stomach twisted as she wondered just how many times he had been in her house,_ _ **in her room**_ _, to purchase the same exact bedspread. Not to mention all the other duplicates that he had for her._

 _She jumped when she heard the door open. It looked automatically when he shut it. Stupid keypad lock. She had a similar one at home._

 _He handed her two Advils and a bottle of water, "Here. Hopefully that will help with the neck pain." His hands went to her thighs, rubbing them softly. "Helga...If you cooperate with me tonight I won't restrain you, okay? I promise I'll be gentle if you just let me."_

" _Okay…" She was too physically and emotionally exhausted to fight him anyway. Part of her suddenly wished he had drowned her._

" _Good girl." He cupped her face into his hands as he pulled her into a kiss. Helga closed her eyes letting him undress her without any defiance. Within moments he was on top of her, grunting. Her eyes squeezed shut tightly._

 _She should have known he was lying._

* * *

An ear piercing scream tore Arnold from an otherwise peaceful sleep. _Helga_. He jumped out of bed and sprinted across to the hall to Helga's room. He threw open the door absolutely terrified what he was going to find. Was her abductor attacking her?

No.

She was having a nightmare, tossing and turning almost violently in her bed. He sat down next to her. "Helga." He took an unsure hand to shake her awak. "You're dreaming." Though he seriously doubted that was completely true. He had a strong feeling her nightmare actually happened.

"Helga...Wake up."

She shot up into a sitting position, tears running down her pale cheeks. "Arnold?" She croaked as she breathed heavily, in the midst of a panic attack.

"Breathe…" Arnold gently rubbed her back. "Just breathe."

Slowly, Helga calmed down. "I remembered something…" She whispered and Arnold's heart broke a little bit. She sounded so broken. "It was so horrible." She blinked out tears and she reaccounted her flashback to Arnold. "It wasn't random Arnold...He had to have been in my house. He had my bedspread. That must be why I just _had_ to change it when I saw it."

"I'll call Gerald in the morning." Arnold told her. "Did you take your sleeping pill?"

Helga shook her head. "No...I didn't even think of it to be honest."

"I'll grab you one. You need your rest."

"That was the first time I had a nightmare since this all happened." Helga admitted after taking the sleeping pill. "While I was in the hospital I didn't dream at all."

"The bedspread might have triggered something in your memory." Arnold guessed, "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Stay with me? Just for a little bit? Until I fall asleep?"

"Of course."

The sleeping pill didn't take long to kick in. She was asleep again with in a half an hour. He tiptoed out of the room, but instead of going back to bed he sat down on the floor in the hallway next to her bedroom door. He needed to be close to her as possible-without making her feel uncomfortable-in case she had another flashback nightmare.

* * *

Finally, after a week without seeing her in the flesh he caught a glimpse of her as Phoebe and Arnold usher her into the boarding house. It made his blood boil at the mere thought of Arnold being under the same roof with _his_ love. It figures he would jump at the chance to have Helga live with him. Arnold's silly little infatuation with Helga was obvious. And pathetic.

He hadn't wanted to get anyone else involved in his quest to win over his love. After all, the more people involved would increase his chances of getting caught.

But if Arnold got in his way his hand would be forced. He would have to be taken care of. It was simple as that.

He put his car in drive and pulled away from the curb in front of the boarding house and a smile slowly appeared on his lips, deciding thinking of ways to get rid of Arnold might be find of fun.

* * *

So sorry for the delay with this update. I recently went though some life changes (a new job!) and I have just been too busy to write. I hope this update was worth the wait. I hope to have another part of Arnold and the Runaway Bride up soon and might have another multi-chapter story in the works, so watch out for those.


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